1. Field of the invention
The present invention relates to an ultrasonic surgical instrument with a finger actuator, and more particularly, relates to an ultrasonic surgical device adapted to be held by a surgeon and operated with precise movements while opening and closing an ultrasonic instrument while meeting the ergonomic requirements of the surgeon with regard to comfort and imparting the surgeon with an enhanced dextral control for easy maneuverability of the instrument.
2. Discussion of the Prior Art
Presently, a wide variety of surgical instruments of the type under consideration are disclosed in the state-of-the-technology which are intended to provide diverse kinds of actuating mechanisms in the use of ultrasonic surgical instruments by surgeons and other medical practitioners for the treatment of patients.
Vaitekunas et al., U.S. Pat. No. 6,004,335, which is commonly assigned to the assignee of the present application, discloses an ultrasonic surgical instrument having an actuating element in a handle portion which is operatively coupled to at least one of two effector elements located at a distal end of the instrument. The actuating element is arranged to move at least one effector element towards the other effector element so as to engage tissue of a patient between the first and second effector elements. A cutting element is coupled to the distal end of an inner shaft in order to cut and/or cauterize tissue which is engaged by the first and second effector elements. Pursuant to the present invention, the actuating element possesses the form of a thimble-shaped lever in which a finger is inserted, whereas the patent discloses the actuating element as a sliding lever. In the present invention, the actuating element moves up and down, in the same direction as a clamp arm to provide for logical and convenient movement of the effector element, whereas the patent has an actuator which slides distally to proximally and then reveresly proximally to distally. Accordingly, pursuant to the inventive actuating element, the surgeon is provided with a more logical and ergonomically convenient actuator which moves in an entirely new way and direction in comparison with the prior art.
Shibata Yoshikiyo Japanese Unexamined Patent Application 2000-41990 discloses an ultrasonic surgical instrument with a thumb activated actuator which is located on the distal end of a handle. The handle is held with the palm down using the fingers to support the underside leaving the thumb free to work the actuator. When the actuator is pushed up by the thumb, the clamp assembly is opened away from the fixed blade, whereas upon the actuator being pushed down by the thumb, the clamp closes. A skid pad is present on the actuator to reduce slippage of the physicians thumb. In contrast, the present invention is designed to alleviate the problem of physician fatigue caused by other hand held instruments from having the fingers held awkwardly during lengthy surgery. The present invention uses a pencil grip rather than the palms down grip providing the surgeon with a more familiar grip which may be held for long periods of time. The ribbed slip guard effectively reduces fatigue while increasing surgical accuracy, and additionally the actuator of the present invention is thimble shaped, and provides for the more versatile pencil grip with the actuator worked by the index finger. Smith et al. U.S. Pat. No. 5,873,873 discloses an ultrasonic surgical device where selective, indexed rotational positioning of the clamping mechanism and end effector is achieved by the provision of a detent mechanism incorporated into a clamp drive mechanism of the apparatus. Rotation is facilitated by a rotational knob located at the distal end of the handle portion of the ultrasonic instrument. Contrastingly, in the present invention, the rotation knob is located towards the center of the handle inside the handle, with the rotational knob being exposed through the two indents. Consequently, the rotation of the knob and therefore of the tip/clamp assembly is facilitated by the positioning of the rotation knob within and towards the center of the handle. The center position is more desirable because it allows the surgeon to rotate the knob with the same hand he is holding the ultrasonic surgical instrument with. Due to the pencil-grip which is used with this instrument, the surgeons do not need to use a second hand to rotate the knob, he merely uses the thumb and ring fingers of the hand holding the instrument.
Young et al. U.S. Pat. No. 5,300,081 discloses a surgical instrument control means for selecting between a first mode of operation in which the advancement of a surgical clip from a storage into the jaw members is initiated by the user, and a second mode in which the advancement of the surgical clips is initiated independently of the user. This instrument it is not ultrasonic, and does not use a finger operated lever to actuate a tip assembly. Although the instrument has a finger operated slide, this slide functions as a selector between two different modes of the function, and does not actuate the tip assembly. The finger slide more closely resembles a slide on a rifle used to choose automatic or semi-automatic rather than the clamp actuator pursuant to the present invention. L""Esperance, Jr. U.S. Pat. No. 5,257,988 discloses a surgical instrument in which a lever system is utilized in order to actuate the forward displacement of a sleeve over a port. Pushing down on the level actuates the sleeve over the port, whereas a spring automatically biases the lever to its upright return position and resultingly exposes the port. In contrast, the present invention uses a lever system to open and close a clamp arm rather than to slide a sleeve into a closed position. This in effect, allows a surgeon to apply force to the lever in both the upward and downward direction for greater control of the clamp, unlike the prior art which can only be pushed down by the surgeon. The patent also fails to disclose an ergonomically shaped thimble-lever to provide more comfort to the surgeon, nor does it display a pencil-grip which offers ergonomic comfort and greater maneuverability to a user. In the patent, the instrument is held with the palm down, requiring the thumb to actuate the lever, whereby the palm-down position decreases both comfort and maneuverability in operating the instrument.
The foregoing drawbacks and limitations which are encountered in the prior art are clearly obviated by the present inventive ultrasonic surgical instrument by providing a finger actuated mechanism which meets the ergonomic requirements of a surgeon or medical practitioner.
Pursuant to the invention, the surgical instrument essentially consists of an ultrasonic surgical device with a blade-like tip and clamp arm, which is held with a handle by the physician or surgeon with a pencil grip. The instrument incorporates a novel thimble-shaped lever at the distal end of the handle for actuating the clamp arm of the ultrasonic surgical instrument, whereby the ergonomic thimble-shaped lever and pencil grip provide the physician with an improved degree of control, greater comfort in manipulating the instrument, and the ability to perform blunt dissections.
The present invention features a surgical instrument of the type described, possessing a pencil grip which provides the physician or surgeon using the ultrasonic surgical device with a familiar grip which allows for finer and more precise motor movements, and therefore an enlarged degree of control in using the instrument. The present invention also employs a thimble-shaped lever which allows the physician or surgeon to apply force to both open and close the clamp arm, in contrast with many prior art devices which function in a spring-loaded operating mode. This imparts the physician with an improved control over the instrument, and also allows him to perform blunt dissections by employing the thimble-shaped lever. The ergonomic design of the thimble-shaped lever results in a greater degree of comfort to the surgeon by reducing stress on the pressure points on the hand of the surgeon. This unique aspect, combined with the fact that the surgeon or practitioner does not have to apply pressure against a spring-loaded actuating system, decreases the occurrence and intensity of any fatigue encounter during lengthy operating procedures utilizing the present ultrasonic surgical instrument.
A handle in the form of a shroud for an ultrasonic surgical instrument incorporating a clamp and blade device is held by a surgeon or medical practitioner like a pencil with a thimble-shaped operating lever being located at the distal end of the handle, whereby the surgeon or practitioner, i.e. physician or nurse, positions an index finger into the lever interior while using the instrument.
Moving the finger, and consequently the lever in an upward direction relative to the longitudinal axis of the instrument, results in the clamp assembly opening upwardly. The lowering of the finger then lowers the clamp arm into a closed position with the fixed blade, as a consequence of which the clamp arm moves in the same direction as the finger operating the lever. The handle is also ergonomically designed to meet the needs of the surgeon or practitioner operating the ultrasonic device, and wherein the pencil grip of the handle provides surgeons with a familiar gripping position to facilitate an increased accuracy in the use of the instrument. The surgical instrument also enables the surgeon or physician to perform blunt dissections by applying force which is adapted to both open and close the instrument, whereas blunt dissection cannot be readily accomplished by means of instruments which possess a spring-loaded actuating lever. The design of the inventive ultrasonic surgical instrument focuses on imparting surgeons with a greater degree of dextral control by enabling them to use large muscle groups to grippingly hold and support the instrument, and fine motor skills to precisely operate the thimble-shaped lever.
In addition, pursuant to a further inventive feature, enabling concurrent rotation of a rotator arrangement located within the handle which enables selective rotational movement of the clamp arm, and resultingly clamp and blade device, about the longitudinal axis of the instrument.
Accordingly, it is an object of the present invention to provide an ultrasonic surgical instrument which is operable by a surgeon or medical practitioner through a finger-actuated lever mechanism while held in a pencil-like gripped position.
Another object is to provide an ultrasonic surgical instrument of the type described which facilitates precise selective clamping and/or rotational operation of cooperating cam and blade component while meeting the ergonomic requirements of the surgeon or medical practitioner employing the instrument.
A further object of the invention resides in the provision of a method for the utilization of an ultrasonic surgical instrument which includes thimble-shaped finger-operated lever mechanism in conformance with the ergonomic needs of a surgeon or medial practitioner.